ComWreck Consumer Guide.

After our official and useless guide about modem hijacking, here's a proper one:

ComWreck Consumer Guide:
Ultimate Modem Hijacking Protection

(1) Tom Butler (ComReg) on RTE: "Well, I’ve … as you said there, in reading out what Eircom said, the people who generate these charges are generally… tend to be responsible for the charges."
(2) RTE: "The company [Eircom] in a statement told us that while they sympathise with the customer in question […] they have no option but to charge the customer for the calls."

See the full transcript of Tom Butler's RTE interview.

Double-tricked: Eircom screws victims of modem hijacking

Are you in danger of receiving a telephone bill of €150, €650 or €1900? Probably!
If you have a normal dial-up Internet connection, like over 90% of Irish Internet users, you are constantly in danger of getting a huge freak telephone bill of up to several thousand euros.
Exception: Modem hijacking isn’t a problem – and you can stop reading – if you
• use an Apple Mac or a computer based on the Linux operating system,
• or have a dsl broadband Internet connection (provided you have no extra modem connection!),
• or have a wireless Internet connection or a cable Internet connection,
• or are really tech-savvy and know how to detect and avert modem hijacking through stealth diallers immediately.

What is the cause?
Internet crooks are able to “hijack” your modem by smuggling in a “dialler”. This dialler changes the number your modem dials to connect to your Internet Service Provider, without letting you notice. You are unaware that your modem dials into certain expensive international destinations and racks up a damaging telephone bill. Eircom have specifically set up a hideously expensive call Band 13 (“Diego Garcia and certain Pacific Islands”), at 360 cent per minute, to profiteer from its customers who have fallen victim to those Internet criminals. An hour-long connection to a Band 13 destination results in a bill of 216 euros, if your computer is left online for a full day Eircom will extract 5184 euros from you. And they do.

Is the Irish Regulator ComReg not protecting us?
No. ComReg has more pressing things to do than to protect consumers.

Comreg, after being arm-wrestled into doing something, have published a “Consumer Guide” on the issue of modem hijacking. It contains useless advice of the sort: “Avoid certain web sites.” Similar useless advice on how to “reduce” the risk is to be found on Eircom's web site. None of ComReg’s or Eircom’s advice works reliably or helps the normal, non-techie user, neither do firewalls nor anti virus programs.
ComReg has promised consultations with the “industry” on the issue. We are waiting with baited breath.

Can I fully protect myself, without becoming a computer wiz-kid or disabling international calls?
Yes, absolutely. And by doing so you’ll hit two birds with one throw: Protection against diallers and significant reduction of international phone calls.

Frequently Asked Questions.

Have I to block Premium Service Numbers, too, to be protected against modem hijacking?
No. ComReg’s TomButler is wrong to attribute modem hijacking to 15xx numbers. Those numbers are tightly controlled by RegTel. RegTel’s rules allow the use of diallers as a means of payment only under strict guidelines, which exclude abuse. Currently no provider has yet applied to use them. If a rogue Premium Service Provider uses them fraudulently – it has happened – the customer is reimbursed for the charges.

Should I choose Vartec as my Carrier Preselect Telco?
No. Our proposed solution works only if you use Vartec’s call-by-call service. Anyway: Vartec is extremely cheap for international calls, but you would not save a lot on their national and local calls.

Can I really use Vartec’s call-by-call service if I am with UTV, Perlico or any other Telco, rather than with Eircom?
Yes, Vartec’s promotional material is a bit confusing on this issue, as they address it exclusively to Eircom customers. But all Irish Telephone line rentals are with Eircom and Vartec’s call-by-call service works regardless of the company you have gone to for your calls.

Will I get more bills with this solution?
You will, but they will be lower and you can be sure not to receive a freak bill caused by modem hijacking and Eircom’s profiteering on the back of it.
When wholesale line rental is finally introduced in a couple of month’s time (Sept 2004), you’ll get one bill from UTV or Perlico and a second bill for your international calls from Vartec. The new GAA Telecom offers already (June 2004) single billing, it also offers free international call barring and is the perfect choice for dial-up Internet users, who do not use flat rate Internet access (FRIACO), which is only offered by UTV and Perlico.

Note: These proposals are to the best of our knowledge and without connection to the companies of suggested products. Please contact us on johndoherty@comwreck.com with suggestions or critique.
Commission for Communications Wreckulation
June 2004


For more information on the issue of how Eircom profiteers on the back of Internet criminals and Internet porn peddlers, visit the article “Is Guinea Bissau a Pacific Island” on the comwreck web site.

Illustration from the web site: Why would they not smile when their company can make a €216 kill per hour from any of their customers who gets conned by some Internet Porn scammer? As long as the Regulator does not force them, they will do nothing to protect their customers.

resources:

link to the RTE audio file (contains other items as well; go to 20:15 for this item)

Transcript:

Robert: On last weeks Show we were contacted by Michael in West-Clare who told us a perplexing story of how he was saddled with a telephone bill of 50 €for three calls to a premium rate number in the Seychelles. Needless to say Michael had no recollection of making any calls to the Seychelles, least of all to a premium line.

When he narrowed the time of his calls to a visit by his granddaughter when she surfed the internet, which was plugged into his phone line. Michael said he kept an eye on his granddaughter and as far as he could see she was logging on to the latest Britney Spears and Robbie Williams websites - but the sites did contain pop up adds for free CD's and competitions.

Well, Michael seems to have been the victim of what's called a "modem hijack" or dialler program. And don't worry if you haven't a clue what that is because we'll be speaking to Tom Butler - public affairs manager with ComReg - in a moment, who'll explain everything to us. First though, getting back to that 50 € phone bill, when we asked Eircom why Michael would have to pay for calls he plainly didn't make, the company in a statement told us that while they sympathised with the customer in question, they said it was completely outside of Eircom's control and because these premium rate costs have to be paid by Eircom, unfortunately they have no option but the charge the customer for the calls.


Well, as I said, we're joined by the public affairs manager with ComReg, Tom Butler.

Tom, Thanks for coming in for us.

TB: Morning, Robert.

Robert: Now, our caller Michael seems to be a victim of a modem hijack or dialler program. Just what us that?

TB: yeah, this is something we have come across recently called Auto Diallers, Trojan programs or modem hijacking, where peoples dial-up settings on their internet, which are typically 1891, 1892 or 1893 are hijacked and instead of dialling...

Robert: "hijacked"? What do you mean by that?

TB: Well, a piece of software comes into their computer - and can change the settings on their computer and that effectively means instead of them being charged at 1 cent per minute for using the Internet, they could end up being charged at 5 €per minute.

Robert: And what..

TB: ...considerable bills...

Robert: But what can people do to avoid this?

TB: What people should do is that they should check every time they're going - dialling up onto the internet so it doesn't affect necessarily people who have direct connections, but if you dial up every time you go onto the internet, make sure that you're only using the 1890 numbers. If you see 00 or 155 that means you're either using or have gone on to a premium site, or else a site in an international num...

Robert: So you should actually check that...

TB: ...Check the number, yes....

Robert: ...the box that gives you the number where you're actually dialling....

TB: ...it's in a section on your computer which is called Dial-up settings. So just check to ensure that you are using 1890 and then you should be okay. What we've also done is we've produced a leaflet on the ComReg website, so people go on to our website in the "What's New" section they'll find a very easy to understand leaflet which will give people more advice on how to prevent this happening. The main... What people should do - anybody who uses the internet and dials up at home should be aware of this and take steps to stop themselves becoming a victim of it.

Robert: And, very briefly Tom, is it just tough luck for people who get caught up in it?

TB: Well, I've.. as you said there, in reading out what Eircom said, people who generate these charges are generally... tend to be responsible for the charges. But if people have a problem with their bill what they should do is, they should get in contact with their telecom service provider.

Robert: Tom Butler of ComReg, thanks for joining us.
So, be careful out there, folks. And if you do come across any other things and you think you'd like us to check up, call our comment line 1850719303 or email us at thebusiness@rte.ie


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